When J.K. Rowling finished writing the Harry Potter series, she didn’t intend to open it up to interpretation. It was a tightly-wound multi-narrative story with an ending that was more or less planned from the get-go. That said, while Harry Potter canon is respected by loyal fans, it’s not necessarily safe from occasional modding every now and then. Rowling’s series has been adapted, spun-off, and parodied, and it’s typically the most die-hard fans who use her fantastical universe as a backdrop for reimagined creations.
The internet is loaded with creative visual retouching in the Potterverse. Various artists have taken to the series to apply their own styles and interpretations, moderately reimagining certain elements, while completely rewriting history in other scenarios. In some cases, these interpretations can straddle the line between “grotesque” and “creepy,” but there is also plenty of room for “funny,” “romantic,” and even “compassionate.”
Even though diehard fans may find it difficult seeing their favorite characters getting a makeover, change can be good. In other cases, change can be more than most people ever expected. Let’s explore the creative limits to which Potterheads are willing to go.
Keep reading to check out 15 Crazy Harry Potter Fan Redesigns That Will Change Everything.
15. The Trio
From The Sorcerer’s Stone to The Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling never explicitly states that Harry Potter and Hermione Granger are white. Ron Weasley gets the ginger hair and freckles, but details regarding his two best friends are up in the air. So, when fanart by shark-bomb was released depicting Harry and Hermione as Indian and black, respectively, it was less fan fiction and more fan interpretation.
More than a few franchises have been criticized for their lack of racial inclusivity, so, in this case, the critics themselves have gone ahead and made some changes. That said, Rowling hardly turned a blind eye, taking no issue with a black woman being cast as Hermione in the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
14. A whole new meaning behing “Albus Severus”
Fans haven’t exactly been hush-hush over the subject of names in Harry Potter’s family— specifically regarding the names of his children. In The Deathly Hallow’s epilogue, it’s revealed that Harry and Ginny are not only married, but have three children. Unfortunately, not everyone took too kindly to the names they chose for their offspring.
In order of birth, they are as follows: James Sirius, Albus Severus, and Lily Luna. Rowling has proven herself to be a whiz when it comes to making up names, but in the final inning, confidence may have gotten the better of her.
To find inspiration for these names, artist Koenta delved into a possible scenario. This is a case of fanfic layered over more fanfic, but it doesn’t seem entirely implausible. To each their own, after all.
13. Harry Meets the Doctor
In terms of fictional characters from separate franchises transcending their universes to meet in person, characters from Harry Potter and Doctor Who seem like the likeliest of candidates. They can both manipulate time and space, they both practice their own forms of magic, and they’re both perfectly fine with breaking rules, even if said rules result in massively-scale chaos.
So, when the Tumblr user known only as RI-DUMP brought these two worlds together, it seemed appropriate. Especially once the Time Turner gets incorporated, these two worlds are a match made in fandom heaven.
Now, Harry’s version of a TARDIS (a flying Ford Anglia) may not be quite as fancy, but it’s blue, it flies, and it comes equipped but some surprising bells and whistles. That’ll do.
12. Ickle Diddykins
By Rowling’s writing alone, there’s no need to further explain why Dudley Dursley deserves all the hate he received from fans. Yes, he technically redeems himself by The Deathly Hallows, but let’s not forget the lifetime of physical and emotional abuse he forced Harry to endure.
With that being said, how do you make someone like him even more repulsive? You commission artist Rick Ritchie (aka rinthcog).
In this depiction of “Ickle Diddykins,” the character’s despicable persona is visualized through physical repulsion. In fact, it seems as though he’s gone so far beyond self-care that he has machines holding him up, reinforcing the fact that even something as innovative as a scientific discovery can be abused by someone too lazy for their own good.
11. Hero Worship
From the get-go, Draco Malfoy proves himself to be as entitled as he is helpless. When push comes to shove, he appoints his cronies Crabbe and Goyle to the frontlines. When a situation goes south, he whines to his father. When he loses control of the fiendfyre he expels from his wand and is nearly consumed by flames as a result, he loses any shred of self-respect and grovels to his sworn enemy for rescue.
Then again, according to this piece of fan art by CaptBexx, maybe “sworn enemy” wasn’t quite right. Malfoy has always been especially rude, yet desparate for Harry’s attention Harry, ever since he turned down his attempt at a friendship. Maybe the love was there all along. Maybe the root of all his hatred stems from a broken heart. He’s still a bigot, sure, but a broken-hearted bigot.
10. Luna Loves
When Luna Lovegood is introduced into the series in The Order of the Phoenix, her first impression on readers is decidedly odd. That vibe stuck with her throughout the rest of the series, but there was more to her than surface-level quirkiness.
Readers quickly discovered that she was unnaturally kind, empathetic, and loyal. If captains go down with their ships, the Luna Lovegoods of the world stand by their side and tag along to the bitter end.
As far as first impressions go, she seemed like the last person Harry Potter would ever want to end up with. Fast-forward a bit through their friendship, and it’s anyone’s guess why they didn’t end up together. Opposites attract, and the artist known as CrystallineColey saw fit to rewrite history accordingly.
9. Anime Hogwarts
As distinctly stylized as anime may be, it has room for all sorts of genres. There are the specific subgenres, like cyberpunk and isekai, for example, but they all exist under broad umbrella categories like drama, horror, or— in the case of something like Harry Potter— fantasy. With all this said, it begs the question: why hasn’t there been an official Harry Potter anime yet?
Rights issues aside, illustrator kuroii went ahead and it made it happen anyway (unofficially, but convincingly). This depiction of Rowling’s Wizarding World characters proves that something as familiar and beloved as Harry Potter can still work with a different coat of paint, assuming it doesn’t go down one of the less socially acceptable anime subgenres - which has more than likely already been done.
8. Disneyfication
Once upon a time, Disney was a young, blossoming studio creating beloved pieces of animated fiction. Now, it’s a global industry ranking at No. 13 on Forbes’ “World’s Most Powerful Brands” list. Nowadays, owning Lucasfilm and Marvel, ESPN, and ABC (just to name a few properties), Disney is not just the House of Mouse, it’s the Mansion of Expansion.
Still, they couldn’t ever manage to get the rights to Harry Potter. Though they certainly tried, their communication with Rowling mirrored the business relationship with Disney and P.L. Travers (see: Saving Mr. Banks), but the studio wasn’t willing to make quite as many sacrifices.
Even though a Disney-fied Potterverse may never see the light of day, the illustrator known as Makani went ahead and envisioned what things might have looked like had Disney gotten its way. Fun fact: Disney wanted the series to be animated.
7. Awkward Pensieve is Awkward
When the Pensieve was introduced in the Potter series, it was an exciting find. Most people would love to revisit their own memories as though thoughts were no different than files stored on a hard drive, so seeing characters like Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter having that opportunity was the next best thing. Still, neither the books nor the movies really ever considered how silly people look while using one… Until animateglee went ahead and depicted Pensieve use from a further perspective.
In the movies, especially, the Pensieve moments are epic. Characters dip their heads into the basin’s shallow pool, then dissolve into their memories like ink in water. What they don’t consider, however, is how ridiculous they look from from away.
Surely, there is a more visually appealing way to pull this off.
6. Ron’s Worst Nightmare
As Ron is trying to destroy the locket Horcrux in The Deathly Hallows, the evil item does its best to stop him. There’s an entire emotional arsenal fending him off, doings its best to mess with his head long enough that he might just give up completely.
One of its attempts include a lifelike visual of Harry and Hermione kissing. As he’s jealous of their relationship enough as it is, this nearly sends him over the edge. Still, it could have been worse. Hermione could have been making out with Draco Malfoy.
As unlikely as this sort of union might have been, Little Chmura went ahead and imagined it anyway. It’s a visual that might have never messed with Ron’s head in the books or movies, but it’ll definitely have a questionable effect on loyal Potterheads.
5. Polyjuice Possibilities
We’re living in an era where gender and racial inclusivity is becoming more and more commonplace. There are critics yearning for “the good ol’ days,” but opposition is to be expected (can’t have the sweet without the sour, after all).
With this being the case, various franchises have outright exchanged male roles with women. The Ghostbusters reboot was led by an all female cast, Ocean’s 11 went from all guys to Ocean 8’s all gals, and even the Doctor on Doctor Who has regenerated into a woman.
So, what about Harry Potter?
Artist Emmilinne ignored the source material and reimagined J.K. Rowling’s main trio in gender-swapped roles. Ron is Ronnie, Hermione is Herman, and Harry is Harriet - and they all look fantastic.
4. The Witch in the Fireplace
In one of the 10th Doctor’s adventures on Doctor Who titled “The Girl in the Fireplace”, he visits Madame de Pompadour, and the two share a special connection. They’re able to speak through her fireplace, making her believe that the Doctor is based in some form of magic (which he kind of is, depending on your definition of magic).
Considering that characters in the Harry Potter universe are able to communicate with people via the fireplace as well, it’s fitting that the Doctor might eventually cross paths with someone in the Wizarding World.
Despite it not being official canon, artist Karen Hallion made it happen anyway. She swapped out the titular “girl” with a “witch” (Hermione Granger, to be specific), crafting a fanfic writer’s dream come true.
3. The Cursed Children
Possibly the worst takeaway from Harry Potter and the Cursed Child isn’t necessarily the plot or the awkward return of certain characters, but the fact that Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy don’t become romantically involved.
It can be argued that friendship is just another form of love, but the setup in Cursed Child was perfect for the series’ first straightforward dive into LGBTQ-friendly relationships. Dumbledor will count once filmmakers get brave enough to include his love story outright.
That said, instead of being annoyed that Scorpius randomly falls for Rose Weasley out of nowhere in the final few moments of the play, artist Flayu just created her own reality. In her reality, the boys fall in love with each other, #Scorbus is canon, and critics of Rowling’s ultimate decision can finally sleep peacefully at night.
2. “Don’t Tell Harry”
Speaking a LGBTQ relationships in the Wizarding World, an artist known as Gone-Batty has given an orientation makeover to a couple of the series’ main characters: Hermione Granger and Ginny Weasley. Now, as if there wasn’t already enough drama at Hogwarts, these two are instituting some emotional disorder.
On one side of the coin, Ron will be devastated. Not only is the girl he loves with someone else, she’s with his sister. Then, on the other side of the coin, Harry is equally devastated. Not only is the girl he loves with someone else, she’s with his best friend. Then again, as troubling as it might be for them to accept things as they are, they can consider it a life lesson. Things don’t always go as planned— least of all when romance gets involved.
1. Alternate Reality
If James Potter had never ended up with Lily Evans, Harry Potter would never exist. What’s more, if they never ended up together, there’s a possibility Lily might have ended up with Severus Snape.
They grew up together, were best friends, and while it was never made explicitly clear whether or not Lily ever felt attracted to him, Snape was head-over-heels in love with her. For alternative reality’s sake, julvett imagined a world where the fan ship known as “Snily” is legit.
The takeaway? Snape is his usual self (just noticeably less bitter) and Lily seems just as resolute as ever. It’s sad not seeing James involved, but such is the magic of alternate realities. Somewhere out there, James and Lily are living happily ever after.
—
What is some crazy Harry Potter fan art you’d like to see? Let us know in the comments!
